PROGRAMME DETAILS

Hip Hop & Rock: Voices Across Generations

DATE / TIME

VENUE

FESTIVAL PASS EVENT

LANGUAGE

This session is in English

MODERATED BY

Lim Cheng Tju

DESCRIPTION

Rap star Kendrick Lamar won a Pulitzer prize while rock legend Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote a sung-and-rapped-through musical based on the life of American Founding Father, Alexander Hamilton. Why and how have popular musicians become the prophets of our times? This panel will trace the rise of popular music and its variant genres in reflecting the social currents through the decades.

FEATURING

Jesse Oliver is the 2017 Australian Poetry Slam champion in the adult category. He is also the new co-director of the National Young Writers’ Festival in Newcastle, Australia. In 2018, he launched his rap/poetry show ‘Star-Crossed Poetry’ at Perth’s Fringe Festival and is publishing his first book. He uses spoken word to discuss his lived experiences of homelessness, gender transition and mental illness.

Akeem Jahat is a rapper, songwriter and producer known for his raw streetwise works in the mixtape circuit. His highly-acclaimed 2014 mixtape release, SeluDOPE, steered the direction of the region’s rap movement. Known for his clever wordplay, unapologetic verses, fearless delivery and vivid storytelling, Akeem has collaborated with rap giants like Sonaone, Rap OG and Joe Flizzow.

Vanessa Fernandez is a singer, radio presenter and music culture leader. She has performed at the Gilles Peterson Worldwide Festival (France), Laneway Festival (Singapore), BIGSOUND (Australia) and V-ROX (Russia). A part of audio-visual collective Syndicate, she has released the Vandetta EP and the Mindkiller EP. She has seven years of radio experience as a former presenter on 987FM and former programme director of Lush 99.5FM.